Birth of Jesus, 16th c. Flemish school

The subject depicted here is the adoration of Jesus by Virgin Mary and Saint Joseph happening in the remains of a palace.
Mary with her arms crossed on her breast looks with devotion at her son lied down on a marble pedestal. St Joseph his hands joined in prayer contemplates Jesus. The Holy family stands out of the background composed with architecture elements: the blue and yellow marble pillar and archways carved with grotesques and arabesques. Behind ruins we can see fields and an angel in the sky with phylactery. Behind the archway, a shepherd's coming to worship the Child.
This painting theatrical staging, architecture elements is close to works by Pieter Coecke Van Aelst, Flemish painter and architector, who studied classic architecture in Roma.
Our painting is close to two triptychs of Adoration of the Magi by Pieter Coecke Van Aelst, exposed at Prado Museum, Madrid.
Our painting is made by one of numerous co-workers of Pieter Coecke Van Aelst, probably in his workshop.
First half of 16th century, oil on oak cradled panel.
H. 48,5 cm, w. 33 cm

Pieter Coecke van Aelst or Pieter Coecke van Aelst the Elder (Aalst, 14 August 1502 – Brussels, 6 December 1550) was a Flemish painter, sculptor, architect, author and designer of woodcuts, goldsmith's work, stained glass and tapestries.[1] His principal subjects were Christian religious themes. He worked in Antwerp and Brussels and was appointed court painter to Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor.
Pieter Coecke van Aelst later studied in Italy where in Rome he made drawings after Classical sculpture and architecture.
Pieter Coecke van Aelst was a versatile artist and a master designer who devised projects across a wide range of different media, including panel paintings, sculptures, prints, tapestries, stained glass and goldsmith's work

In his art Coecke showed his ambition to emulate contemporary Italian artists. From the later 1520s his works start to reveal the Italian influence, as is noticeable in his figures, which gain in monumentality, and the greater movement and drama in his compositions. His main model was Raphael and his circle. Coecke was likely already familiar with their compositions in Antwerp. However, when he traveled to Constantinople around 1533, he likely visited Mantua, where Raphael's leading pupil Giulio Romano was active at the time. Romano possessed a large collection of Raphael's drawings and Coecke must have availed himself of the opportunity to study these in detail during his visit. After his return to Flanders Coecke's style changed dramatically and approached the Italian models he had studied.
Coecke operated a large workshop, which was organized in an efficient manner. He acted as an entrepreneur who provided his assistants with his original inventions, which were then turned into final works under his supervision. The style that he created was widely imitated.